Witness interview: Gretchen Doyle, victims friend Wednesday, March
6, 2002  4:30 p.m. This witness, identified as Andrea Stover's best
friend by Stover's parents, was interviewed at the Yoknapatawpha County
Sheriff's Office. The interview was conducted by Det. Sam Murphy and Det.
Ted Armstrong, and was recorded on a portable tape recorder with the witness's
knowledge and consent.

SM : Thank you for that. Once again could you state your name
and address?

GD : Gretchen Marie Doyle, 404 Sisk.

TA : Now Ms. Doyle, we need you to talk a little bit more about
the people in Ms. Stovers life.

GD : I already told you, I dont know many of them.

TA : Well, it does seem like you know more than youre letting
on, like for instance Trevor OShea. He says he knows you.

GD : Of course. We went to college around the same time. But were
not exactly friends.

SM : What was his relationship with Ms. Stover?

GD : Oh, they were good friends, I suppose. Theyd known
each other since high school. They saw more of each other in college than
nowadays. You know, as a student its easy to find time for friends.

TA : Are you saying Ms. Stover didnt have time for friends
lately?

GD : No! Not at all. I wish you wouldnt twist my words around.

TA : Well then, what did you mean?

GD : I just meant that Andrea and Trevor saw more of each other
before real life took over, you know, jobs and paying the bills. He was
wrapped up in his teaching. I guess Andrea saw him from time to time.

SM : What about you and Mr. OShea? How often do you see
him?

GD : Me? Oh, never  I mean, not on purpose. Sorry. I mean,
weve bumped into each other here and there. I suppose when Andrea
dragged me to parties, I might see him there, but not often. I think he
was more studious than Andrea as opposed to partying.

SM : As far as you know, did Ms. Stover see Mr. OShea the
week preceding her death?

GD : I dont know, to be honest. I dont think so 
she didnt mention it to me.

SM : Who else did Ms. Stover see that week?

GD : I dont remember exactly. Of course she saw everyone
in the group, Frank and Owen and all the rest.

SM : Thats Owen Norris?

GD : Yes.

SM : When did she see him?

GD : Aside from rehearsal? I dont recall. Im sorry,
its not like I had access to her date book. But I think they got
together for lunch or maybe dinner to talk about the new production. It
was some time during the week rather than the weekend.

TA : What exactly was their relationship? Mr. Norris seems to
have written her some strange letters.

GD : Im not aware of them.

TA : Were they lovers?

GD : What? Oh, no, not at all. Owens interests dont
tend that way  I mean, Andrea doesnt seem to be his type.
I dont know him that well, but it seems that way. Hes more
into blonds, Andrea told me. They were just friends, and of course they
had a professional interest in each other.

SM : What about Frank Tuttle? You mentioned Ms. Stover saw him,
too. Was it in a professional capacity?

GD : As far as I know. He wanted to see her that weekend, the
weekend before it happened. But she had other things to take care
of. I think she was a little tired of living at home. She spent some time
looking for apartments and had to work too on Saturday  Occasions,
thats her day job. So I think she just wanted a little space.

TA : Did she want space from you, too?

GD : What do you mean by that?

TA : Ms. Doyle, in your letters, and there sure were a lot of
them, it seems you were pretty eager to be with Ms. Stover when she was
released. You even mentioned going away with her. Were you disappointed
maybe that she wasnt as excited to see you as you were to see her?

GD : What? No, of course not! She was perfectly glad to see me.
Its always been a fantasy of ours  you know, best friends
on a cross-country road trip. Weve talked about it off and on for
years. It was really more a device to keep her spirits up than anything
real, I suppose. I mean, I would have gone if she wanted to, but I didnt
expect it. That doesnt mean we werent getting along, not at
all. She really wanted to return to her work, which I understand completely.

SM : Lets talk about her work. Are you sure she never mentioned
any conflicts within Oxtales?

GD : Not really, no  aside from the usual artistic differences.

SM : What do you mean by artistic differences?

GD : Well, I think she was a little stressed out by having to
come back after being away for so long. The assistant director 
Dale?  he apparently had a different style and while she was away
he did a few productions more to his own tastes, and they seemed to do
well. She sort of had to re-assert herself, I guess, which is difficult,
in terms of doing risqué things and taking on really difficult
issues.

SM : How did the rest of the group feel about that? Were they
on Ms. Stovers side or Mr. Kings?

GD : Oh. I really dont know, I hardly know any of them at
all, not well enough to know that sort of thing. And it wasnt really
black and white  there were advantages to both styles, from what
I could tell. Dale being more political and straight-ahead, and Andrea
more outrageous. But I think Andrea wondered whether everyone might be
better off, careerwise, if she backed off  in terms of critical
praise, I mean. Its one thing to be notorious, and another thing
to be taken seriously as an actor or playwright.

TA : So Ethan Lewiston preferred Mr. Kings direction?

GD : No. I wouldnt say that. I guess Andrea felt responsible
for all of them professionally, after what happened. And so she would
talk about these things with me. But I reassured her that they wouldnt
be there if they didnt want to work with her, on her vision. Ethan
 I didnt know him, just heard about him  I would imagine
that the freedom she gave him to experiment was tremendous. So I cant
imagine he would have a serious gripe. Like I told her, if he had a serious
gripe, why didnt he leave?

SM : What about Henry Jackson  the actor?

GD : I never heard much about him. He never seemed to come up.

SM : Did she ever mention Sheila Love, the actress?

GD : No. Um, I mean, only in passing, when she was talking about
a particular scene and what was going on, she might say Sheila was stage
right or something. She never talked about her outside that context.

TA : She never mentioned she was jealous of Sheila, or Sheila
was jealous of her?

GD : No, why?

TA : Ms. Doyle, Sheila Love began dating Frank Tuttle while Ms.
Stover was incarcerated, and was still dating him when Ms. Stover died.
As far as we can tell, that means Mr. Tuttle was in the middle of a triangle.
Are you absolutely sure Ms. Stover never mentioned it to you?

GD : No. Sorry  I mean, Im sure she never mentioned
it. It doesnt surprise me  Andrea wasnt possessive like
that, in fact she was the opposite, generous in her relationships with
people. She and Frank were on again, off again. I can only think shed
have been relieved if hed found someone else to be interested in.

TA : What do you mean by that? Was Mr. Tuttle bothering Ms. Stover
in any way?

GD : Um, not bothering, no. Id say that he was the pursuer,
he was the one calling her and asking her out or asking her to spend time
with him. It was a comfortable relationship for her, in terms of she knew
him so well, but Im not sure she wanted to get back in a pattern.

TA : Did Ms. Stover ever say anything that led you to believe
Mr. Tuttle was frightening her?

GD : No! Not at all. Frank is about the most harmless person you
can imagine. Very spiritual, not really into action. I just picked up
these things over time, its not like anyone was making threats or
being histrionic.

SM : What about Mr. Norris or Mr. King? Was Ms. Stover worried
about them or frightened by them in any way?

GD : Absolutely not. Owen, no, of course not  they were
friends. And Dale, I really perceived he was the type to brood instead
of have a confrontation. And really, their relationship was completely
professional  they respected each other as professionals. They had
differences, I suppose They werent petty to each other, no name
calling or anything as far as Andrea told me. It was all strictly within
the realm of their artistic work, reasoned arguments.

TA : All right then. Lets talk a little bit more about your
relationship with Ms. Stover. Her parents mentioned that sometimes she
would sleep over at your place?

GD : Thats right.

TA : How did that work out?

GD : Fine. Im sorry  I dont see what youre
getting at.

TA : How did Ms. Raines feel about it?

GD : What? Oh! Ursula. No, of course not. There was never any
problem.

TA : She didnt seem jealous?

GD : No. Well, of course she liked to have time alone with me
 but she knew Andrea, they got along. Andrea wasnt a threat,
she knew that. Ursula and I are completely committed to each other as
partners.

TA : So when Ms. Stover spent the night, would Ms. Raines be there
too?

GD : Um, no, usually not. We dont live together, so usually
it was nights Ursula wasnt there, or if she was she would go home.
Really its a practical thing  there isnt much room and
if we were staying up talking she couldnt sleep.

TA : Right. And how often would you say this happened?

GD : Since she got back? I dont know  maybe four or
five times. Not often.

TA : Thats practically once a week.

GD : Oh. I guess it is. But it wasnt like that  a
regular thing. She might spend a couple of nights one week then none at
all the next. It wasnt planned in any way. Um, I guess I can see
where youre heading and really, there was nothing between us that
would cause Ursula to be jealous. It wasnt a triangle, as you call
it.

TA : What was it then?

GD : Between the three of us? There was nothing. Andrea was my
best friend, Ursula is my girlfriend. I loved them both, but of course
in completely different ways. They both knew that. Ursula knew she had
to trust me, its all about trust  how can someone be happy
if you suffocate them? She knew that. I wish you would stop assuming everything
is about sex  its not. Sex is something Ursula and I share
exclusively. Just because I loved Andrea doesnt mean I wanted to
have sex with her, or had sex with her.

TA : Except for in college.

GD : Please! That was a long time ago.

TA : And Ms. Raines was comfortable with this?

GD : Of course.

TA : In your letters you mention that Ms. Raines was glad you
wouldnt be going away with Ms. Stover. Why?

GD : Well, of course shed be glad. Who wants their lover
to go away for three weeks?

TA : But if Ms. Raines wanted you to be happy, wouldnt she
want you to go have fun?

GD : I guess so. Yes. I dont know. Um, Im feeling
really uncomfortable here  I feel like youre trying to push
me into a corner and say something about Ursula I dont want to.
Its not the way you think  she loves me, she sometimes worries
about other relationships but that doesnt mean she wants to keep
me locked in a closet. Anyone whos mature realizes committing to
love a single person is a choice  other possibilities exist, theres
doubt, but you have to trust despite that. Trust the other person is going
to choose the right path. Ursula did, I know it wasnt easy but she
did.

TA : How do you know it wasnt easy, as you put it? Did Ms.
Raines ever mention anything specific to you?

GD : No, not really. Um, I guess I tend to pick up a lot from
peoples expressions, little things they say  over time, you
know? Its not like she was waving a flag and shouting Im
jealous.

TA : So you do think she was jealous.

GD : No. Not really. She, I dont know. Its not jealousy
in the way youre thinking. Its so hard, with both of us working
so much and our own lives and obligations  when were alone
together, its a precious gift. She was jealous of that  of
our time together. Yes, thats what it was. She wanted to protect
the time she and I had for each other. Every busy couple runs into the
same problem, Im sure.

TA : Is that what happened the night Ms. Stover died? Was Ms.
Raines jealous of the time you spent with Ms. Stover?

GD : I dont think so. I guess when I left she was a little
down because wed planned to spend the evening together, we have
a nice quiet Sunday routine and it was disrupted. So she was disappointed,
but I wouldnt say jealous. Jealous is the wrong word, Im sure.

SM : And when you left to go see Ms. Stover, Ms. Raines stayed
behind?

GD : For a while, yes. She told me she left to go back to her
place around 11:30. I guess she needed to get up really early for work
so she didnt want me to come in late and wake her.

SM : And youre sure she went home?

GD : Yes.

SM : When did you hear from Ms. Raines next?

GD : I called her right away the next morning, I called her cell
phone but it was off. I guess the battery was out. So we talked at, I
dont know, 11. She came home and took the rest of the day off to
be with me.

TA : All right. What about your last meeting with Ms. Stover?
We already talked about it once. Is there anything else she mentioned
to you, anything that was worrying her?

GD : No. Not really.

SM : Did she mention being afraid for her safety?

GD : No. Never.

TA : Do you remember what Ms. Stover was wearing?

GD : Wearing? Yes. I remember like it was yesterday. Her grey
coat, a striped sweater, jeans. I dont know about shoes. She had
her usual blue bag. Dont you know this already?

TA : We just need to verify everything we found belonged to Ms.
Stover. What about a hat or any jewelry, rings?

GD : She didnt wear rings, but of course there was her necklace.

TA : Necklace?

GD : I gave it to her when she came back. Sort of a Christmas/New
Year/new beginning present. An antique poison locket I found in New Orleans,
with a dark garnet, almost black, on a longish silver chain. She pretty
much always wore it.

TA : Anything in the locket?

GD : No, I mean I gave it to her empty, she might have put something
in it. Why? Dont you have it?

TA : Id have to look in the inventory. Im sure its
there. Is there anything else you want to add?

GD : No, I cant think of anything. Do you have any idea
who could have done this? I just wish I could know, so there would be
some closure.

TA : Were working on it. If you think of anything else,
give us a call.